<p>Ismar David belonged to a group of accomplished calligraphers who established themselves as jacket designers in New York in the 1950s. David's jacket designs are distinguished from other work of the period as powerful and expressive. His style is informed by a thorough mastery of the typographic tradition yet looks remarkably fresh, even today. He combines calligrapher's craft with fine artist's sensibility "to communicate his ideas and his feelings in the service of the book."This book examines the historical context of Ismar David's work including a concise overview of the history of book jacket design in Germany and in the U.S. and describes David's freelance career in publishing. Thirty of his noteworthy jackets are highlighted and discussed. The author argues that the current preference for concept-driven jacket design may eventually give way to another style more closely based on formal craftsmanship that would benefit from Ismar David's legacy.</p>

The Book Jackets of Ismar David A Calligraphic Legacy

Arts & Photography

Misha Beletsky

Graphic Design

RIT Cary Graphic Arts Press

<p>The Noblest Roman offers a richly illustrated and definitive history of Centaur, an important American typeface. The story of the type's creation has been recounted many times in general terms, following a version of events purported by its designer, Bruce Rogers. Jerry Kelly and Misha Beletsky uncover new research that was culled from unpublished documents to present a more accurate narrative of its history.JERRY KELLY is an independent designer, calligrapher and printer. He is an authority on the work of Bruce Rogers, a contributor toBruce Rogers: A Life in Letters and the author of The First Flowering: Bruce Rogers at the Riverside Press.MISHA BELETSKY is the Art Director of Abbeville Press. He is the author of Book Jackets of Ismar David: A Calligraphic Legacy and a co-author of Language Culture Type: International Type Design in the Age of Unicode.</p>

The Noblest Roman: A History of the Centaur Types of Bruce Rogers

Jerry Kelly

RIT Press

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Books by Misha Beletsky